Maximilian had finally returned home, safe and sound. The infiltration had gone smoothly, without a hitch, thanks to the new skills and EF he had gained from the trial.
After knocking out that bigshot Heinrich Strauss, he took a sample of the man's blood and inserted it into his suit's analyzer. Fortunately, the suit Blood Mongoose had left in the vault was an experimental model, custom-built for both battlefield and infiltration missions. That's why it came equipped with most of the functions needed to bypass standard UEC security protocols.
Take, for example, the doors that require DNA verification. All he had to do was collect a drop of Strauss's blood, insert it into the analyzer, and the suit handled the rest. The gloves could mimic both the DNA and fingerprints of the target as long as a blood sample was provided, everything was automated.
Afterward, he shot cryo-substance into the ventilation system to lower the temperature. Normally, the security protocol would seal the ventilation shafts once temperatures dropped below a certain threshold. However, exiting through the data room vents was ideal since he could easily override that protocol inside the data room.
So, Maximilian didn't face much resistance on his way out. By the time Strauss regained consciousness, Maximilian was already back at his home.
He removed his armor and stored it in the system's storage unit. After freshening up, he returned to his room and began transferring the data he had copied to his personal computer from the power suit's internal memory storage.
He had to admit, the amount of data he retrieved was massive. The suit's internal storage had almost reached its limit. Thankfully, the armor had also been designed with infiltration and sabotage operations in mind, equipped with high-capacity memory storage so operatives could extract vast quantities of data. Otherwise, this mission wouldn't have been worth it if the operative couldn't bring back all the intel.
Now, sitting in front of his computer, Maximilian ensured the data he obtained from the IHB data center was clean, no trackers, no embedded codes that could expose his location. Once he was confident it was safe, he began combing through the files.
He spent a few minutes searching for the names Rebecca Lane and Rebecca Prescott. Just as he expected, he found both entries in the database. According to the information, Rebecca Lane was the daughter of Owen Lane, the infamous Blood Mongoose. The file included details of who she was, and more importantly, who she is now.
It appeared that Rebecca was living alone on the outskirts of the city. The file even included her exact address, an address Maximilian planned to visit tomorrow, after finishing training with Ricardo's group.
Next, he searched for information on Photon Fury, the most powerful hero in the city-state and a key figure from the Central. He wanted to learn everything he could about her, especially any weaknesses.
And from what he read… he found it. Photon Fury's weakness, along with specifications that were kept hidden from the public eye.
With her secrets now in hand, Maximilian had the means to counter her. But it would take several days of preparation before the preparation was finish.
He then peruse teh data for ten more minute before his eyes stumble on a foot note. A note Strauss had made and save into the data center. "Surveillance Target: Maximilian Sterling Graham."
Maximilian was stunned, why the hell was this bigshot interest in him? Did he somehow pissed thsi guy off without him knowing!? It shouldn't be… right? What gives!?
It's definitely not the time he knocked the guy out to take hsi bloos, he made sure that the guy didn't even see his shadow.
Maximilian frowned, Whatever the case, he decided to use the plan B to ensure his peacefulness. He took out the magical glasses from the system storage and wear it, before filing another citizenship register and sent it.
After finishing this, He was baout to go to sleep but he then check the system UI. And what made him stunned was a section where it display his villain point.
'Villain Point: 2500'
"Huh? What the!?" Maximilian frown, why was the point suddenly spike like that.
He remember that the point he got from teh main quest is just 200! Why it suddenly spike like that after he had broke into local IHB branch to get those data. He didn't even leaked it he just keep it to himself!
What teh hell happened!?
"System!"
[ZZzzz….]
"Oi! System!"
[Eh!? stop bothering me Max… Do you know what time this is!? (;´Д｀) ] The system grogily replied and went silence.
"Get up already! You sleepy head! Do you even need sleep!? Aren't you a system!?" Maximilian retort.
[Ugghhh! Fine! What is it? (＃｀д´)ﾉ ] The system annoyed, but finally relent.
"The villain point, why was it spiking up like this?" Maximilian asks.
[Huh? Isn't it a good thing? You'll have the point to buy some nice thing from teh shop and even use it to activate some advance features. (ー_ー゛) ] The system asks, confused at teh question.
"I know! dumbass. It's just that this 2500 point, I got it after I've broke into IHB Local Branch!"
[And? (눈_눈) ]
"And what I got from the main quest was just 200 villain points! Aren't main quests supposed to be… like, something grand, something significant!? But it's just a measly 200 points!" Maximilian complained.
[Hmm… Let me see… (´-ω-`)] The system replied, then went silent for a few minutes.
[Hmm… you're right… You're not supposed to get only 200 villain points in the main quest. Even though beating up a bunch of nobodies was an insignificant villainous deed, the nature of a main quest should amplify that by at least five times… Something isn't right here… (￣～￣;)]
"Right? Are you sure you're not bugged!?" he asked.
[That's impossible! If there really is a bug, it's either you or this world that's bugged—not the system. (￣^￣)]
"You sure are confident. Aren't you just a bunch of code?" Maximilian teased.
[Hmph! For someone who was a second-rate programmer yourself, you sure talk big! (￣^￣)]
"Hey!"
[No, Max… The system isn't just strings of code… It's built different.]
"Ohhh?" Maximilian's voice dragged out, his right brow rising with a knowing smile. "'It's built different'? Not 'I'm built different'!?"
[Oh! I mean—I'm built different! Umu! I just misspoke! (=3=)]
"Okaaay…"
[Anyway! I was built different! I was born from magic woven into the flow of the universe itself through the most powerful artifact in existence! Like I said, there's no way I have a bug! If there's a bug, then it's this damn universe that's bugged! Not me! Umu! (￣^￣)] The system huffed.
"You sound more like you're trying to convince yourself than actually explaining," Maximilian shot back, deadpan.
[...]
[Ahem… Back to the topic! This means something might be interfering—either a powerful being or your own actions caused the system to interpret the result as a heroic deed, not a villainous one! That's why your villain points aren't as high as they should be. (￣▽￣;)]
"A powerful being? How powerful are we talking about?" he inquired.
[A multiversal-level of powerful. That's the only kind of power that could interfere with the flow of the universe.]
"F*ck…" Maximilian muttered under his breath.
[Ohhh, but don't worry! Someone of that caliber wouldn't even notice you even if you blew up this planet. Unless… you personally caught their attention! (づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ] The system said mischievously.
"That's not funny…"
[ (≧▽≦) ]
[Ahem…] The system faked a cough to adjust the mood. [But honestly, you don't need to worry about that. The multiverse is vast! Infinite, even! And beings with that kind of power don't even number 100 across this vast, infinite-like dimension.] the system explained.
"100? You mean there are nearly 100 of such beings!?" Maximilian was alarmed.
[You're missing the point here, Max… I mean… you're infinitely more likely to survive a plane crash completely unharmed than to ever meet such a being. (ー_ー゛)]
"Ok…" Maximilian started to calm down.
[If you're still feeling unsettled, then… I'll tell you this… have you ever gotten angry at a single protozoa in a random puddle?] the system asked.
"Who in their right mind would get angry at a protozoa?" Maximilian frowned.
[Exactly! You are that protozoa in the eyes of such a being! Hello, protozoa. (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و]
"...."
[This brings us to the second fact: your actions may have caused the system to interpret the results as more of a heroic deed than a villainous one. That's why you only got measly Villain Points.] The system concluded.
"I mean... Isn't there supposed to be some kind of log or something for you to check? So I can know what went wrong." he asked.
[I'm sorry, there's no such function.] said the system.
"Are you kidding!? You even have functions for GPS and dimensional storage that can hold tons of stuff, but no log to check? What kind of system are you?"
[The kind of system that prioritizes practical, powerful functions over useless logs... Or would you prefer logs instead of dimensional storage? That can be arranged. (눈_눈)]
"No thanks, I prefer those powerful functions more."
[See? (๑>ᴗ<๑)]
"You know what? Arguing with you exhausts me... Good night." Maximilian said with a sigh as he lay down on his bed.
[G'night! (◕ヮ◕)ﾉ]